Hello,

I learned -not without surprise- that using a false identity (including a pseudonym on a forum) is illegal, according the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/09/illegal-internet-things/faking-your-name-online), so all of us are on illegality just because we use a pseudonym.

I'm not trying to troll or something, i just find it so surprising that i may have misunderstood. Can you confirm ?

Thanks.

404, page not found. And, I heavily believe that such involves only certain sites, not places like e6.

heres the link:
http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/09/illegal-internet-things/faking-your-name-online

...though after skimming the page i really couldnt find anything about "using false identity" from the page that was linked as source for that. also that claim seems to be purely based on case where someone impersonated their boss on facebook to fuck with them.

so. that "using usernames online is illegal" seems to be complete bullshit.

You can view the actual law on law.cornell.edu.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure that using a pseudonym online wouldn't be considered impersonating someone, because I don't actually expect anyone to believe that I am, in reality, a flamingo, named on a password generating website.

Just stick to your real name, like me.

No one uses their real name on internet lul.

I think that law more or less only applies if you're falsely using someone's actual identity and/or impersonating someone you're not to gain the upper hand legally/monetarily

Not when you nickname yourself "dickhands mcmike" on a website

facelessmess said:
I think that law more or less only applies if you're falsely using someone's actual identity and/or impersonating someone you're not to gain the upper hand legally/monetarily

Not when you nickname yourself "dickhands mcmike" on a website

what if i'm impersonating dickhands mcmike to steal his e-fame

Munkelzahn said:
what if i'm impersonating dickhands mcmike to steal his e-fame

What's he going to do? Fucker can't type a complaint form, He has dick hands!

I wouldn't consider online alias/nickname as pseudonym.

facelessmess said:
Not when you nickname yourself "dickhands mcmike" on a website

Even if you are using nickname, it can still be seen as impersonating someone. If you have made yourself a big name using "dickhands mcmike" on youtube and have gained millions of subs, pretty sure that if someone makes accounts anywhere with that name and tries to make it seem like it's yours, it's still impersonating you as they are trying to fool someone to think it's you.

DelurC said:
No one uses their real name on internet lul.

I actually do on many places and services are constantly moving towards this model as even my playstation now refers to me by my real name rather than my PSN nickname as well.

Of course there are some cases where you don't want your real life identity to be connected on certain part of online activity, so I can most definitely understand majority of here are not using their real name. I wouldn't be too surprised if someone did figure out my name like one of the staff already did.

Mario69 said:
I wouldn't consider online alias/nickname as pseudonym.

Even if you are using nickname, it can still be seen as impersonating someone. If you have made yourself a big name using "dickhands mcmike" on youtube and have gained millions of subs, pretty sure that if someone makes accounts anywhere with that name and tries to make it seem like it's yours, it's still impersonating you as they are trying to fool someone to think it's you.

I actually do on many places and services are constantly moving towards this model as even my playstation now refers to me by my real name rather than my PSN nickname as well.

Of course there are some cases where you don't want your real life identity to be connected on certain part of online activity, so I can most definitely understand majority of here are not using their real name. I wouldn't be too surprised if someone did figure out my name like one of the staff already did.

I was, of course, referring to the internet outside of social media.

Mario69 said:
Even if you are using nickname, it can still be seen as impersonating someone. If you have made yourself a big name using "dickhands mcmike" on youtube and have gained millions of subs, pretty sure that if someone makes accounts anywhere with that name and tries to make it seem like it's yours, it's still impersonating you as they are trying to fool someone to think it's you.

Should've clarified that I feel that still falls under impersonating someone else, even if it's a nickname; I more or less meant a random nickname that ISNT trying to pretend to be someone wouldn't fall under that, but proper wording on the imternet ain't too easy lmao

Lance_Armstrong said:
Just stick to your real name, like me.

You cheeky git

Penguinempire-Dennis said:
You cheeky git

He's lying. His real name is One-Nut Bandit.

facelessmess said:
Should've clarified that I feel that still falls under impersonating someone else, even if it's a nickname; I more or less meant a random nickname that ISNT trying to pretend to be someone wouldn't fall under that, but proper wording on the imternet ain't too easy lmao

What if your name (be it real, nick or user) is a common one? Are all John Smiths impersonators?

It's like ripping a CD onto a hard drive, that is technically illegal, in the UK anyway, but most people do it. The courts would be pretty busy if it was enforced.

this is the same article that says having a dynamic ip, which is sometimes mandatory, along with moving somewhere with a different network, as well as getting a different isp, are all illegal, because they change your ip.

not just the same site. the same ARTICLE. fearmongering at its blandest

kamimatsu said:
this is the same article that says having a dynamic ip, which is sometimes mandatory, along with moving somewhere with a different network, as well as getting a different isp, are all illegal, because they change your ip.

Wouldn't that lead to the arrest of everyone who uses a mobile internet connection?

BlueDingo said:
What if your name (be it real, nick or user) is a common one? Are all John Smiths impersonators?

That'd generally be fine so long as you aren't impersonating a specific John Smith (a la not only using the John Smith name but also using his personal info like his SSID and specifically trying to be him in that way)

Since the earth has millions upon millions of people there's no doubt many who share the same name. It's more or less when ur trying to steal shit legally from this person such as stealing SSID and/or credit card numbers and info and claiming to be this specific John Smith

IANAL/TINLA:

The author of that article is a tool. Most of that article is completely wrong, even for its time. The author seems to be writing from a U.S. perspective, but has no idea how the law works in the U.S.

But to address the two specifically cited laws:

18 U.S. Code § 875 and cyber-bullying: First, fuck anyone and everyone who uses their social media contacts to deliberately cause a person emotional distress. Second, free speech protections are broad and, as a result, a prosecutor would have to establish that a given communication constituted a "true threat". This is different from some rando posting a tweet that says "Imma kill you", although this guy ( link ) probably came fairly close to meeting "true threat" criteria (not counting that his behavior in that case seems to be common for him, reducing the "true threat" argument that could be made).

Fake Names and 18 U.S. Code § 1030: Illegal only if you intend to defraud. I'm not defrauding anyone by using a pseudonym on a website that encourages pseudonyms like e621. Comments like Lance's above almost certainly wouldn't be seen as an intent to defraud. Proving intent can be hard, but some cases are certainly easier than others. For instance, creating a Facebook profile using your boss's name and picture, and trying to pass yourself off as your boss to others - there you go, that's fraud.

I guess such laws only cover official sites, governmental services and stuff like this.

FoxFourOhFour said:
What's he going to do? Fucker can't type a complaint form, He has dick hands!

He can dickslap somebody with 5 dicks at once!

rhyolite said:
It's like ripping a CD onto a hard drive, that is technically illegal, in the UK anyway, but most people do it. The courts would be pretty busy if it was enforced.

Law that can not be enforced makes no sense and snouldn't exist to begin with.

DelurC said:
Law that can not be enforced makes no sense and snouldn't exist to begin with.

Indeed, people should be able to legally backup media they legally purchased in the first place. I use usernames/aliases to prevent certain tools from harassing me.

BlueDingo said:
Wouldn't that lead to the arrest of everyone who uses a mobile internet connection?

Yes, along with anyone who owns a laptop with a wireless card, anyone who has used the internet while visiting someone, anyone who has used any kind of Wi-Fi, anyone who has used a public computer, such as one in a library, anyone who owns a phone capable of internet access, anyone who uses a router, anyone who has used more than one modem in their lifetime, and everyone who has registered a domain that has since expired.

In short, might as well bring in everyone period and save time.